1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the field of stretchers, gurneys and other wheeled supports of patients, and specifically to mobile patient support devices capable of accommodating one or more standing attendants, administering medical care to the patient while being simultaneously transported with the patient to the appropriate treatment area.
2. Description of Related Art
Patient stretchers, gurneys and supports are well known in the art for mobile transport of a medical patient. A bedded horizontal platform may include wheels, swivel and rotatable casters, adjustable height and tilt mechanisms, foot pedals for controlling movement of the patient support surface, push handles for mobility, lifts to elevate and lower the patient support surface, and shrouds for accommodating instruments.
There is a need to safely administer emergency and often life-saving medical care while transporting a patient to another area and with the health care attendant""s total devotion to the task of rendering emergency treatment rather than having to be distracted by concentrating on avoiding obstacles in transit and dangerously running alongside the stretcher during the often lengthy encumbered itinerary to the appropriate treatment area. It is usually not medically preferential to delay such care or to perform the life saving/stabilizing medical procedures before transporting the patient to the ultimate treatment destination. For example, in some instances, such as in the case of a patient in cardiac arrest, cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) must be maintained continuously until a heartbeat is restored, and it is not possible to suspend CPR long enough to move the patient more than a few feet. Therefore, when performing CPR, it is not currently possible for the attendants to be mobile.
The present invention solves this problem by allowing the patient to be moved while one or two attendants stand on the mobile platform(s) and administer critical care while the patient is being moved to the appropriate area of treatment. A few minutes saved by the simultaneous rather than sequential administration of these procedures may be the difference in the preserving or losing of human life during some medical emergencies, all while enhancing the safety of the attendant.
A major problem with mobile stretchers or patient transport units on which an attendant could travel with the patient is that the attendant may fall off the stretcher during rapid transit or turning a corner when the attendant""s focus is and should be solely on the patient and the rendering of medical care, as opposed to being concerned with maintaining balance and preventing his or her own fall during transit.
Although most prior art stretchers and patient transport units adequately protect the patient from falling or rolling off during transit, the few in which the attendant travels on the stretcher frame with the patient do not provide physical safeguards to the attendant and the platform does not provide adequate space for movement or stability of the attendant. The prior art also does not provide for more than one attendant being able to travel safely with the patient as there are many circumstances in which, for example, a patient needs to receive manual ventilation support in the head region, while I.V. lines and CPR are being administered on the longitudinal side of the patient. Single platform attendant support devices do not adequately solve this problem.
One such wheeled patient support having a platform is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,190,280 issued to Donohoe in which a platform is secured laterally beyond the periphery of the stretcher in the general body supporting area with a rolling surface mounted to and beneath the platform. In Donohoe, there is only one platform on the side of the patient, and none at the head, and the platform is substantially shorter in length than the length of the patient support surface, has no attached railing to safeguard the attendant from falling during transit, merely mounts to the lower frame, and requires a wheel for support. The assembly must also be stable vertically so that the additional attendant weight on the sides of the assembly do not create center of gravity shifts that could result in the assembly being unstable or tipping over.
A mobile medical patient transport assembly having a patient bed mounted on and above a flat, horizontal, rigid, mobile support frame, with attendant support platforms that are integrated into or extend outwardly from the assembly frame for supporting one or more attendants at the side and/or head of the assembly. Safety rails are provided above the platform to aid the attendants with balance and to prevent them from falling off the platform during transit. This assembly has wheels and a stretcher or mattress so as to support and transport a patient in a supine position along with one or more standing attendants rendering medical care at the side and/or head of the patient without risk of falling off the assembly or tipping over the assembly.
The assembly comprises an upper bed supporting frame and a lower supporting frame connected by vertical supports. Attendant support platforms for supporting one or more attendants on one side or/and at one end of the bed are attached to or emanate from the lower frame. The upper frame has a rigid, planar patient mattress support deck connected to the upper frame, to receive a patient support surface such as a mattress or pad or to allow the patient to be placed directly on the support deck without a mattress or pad.
Four wheels are connected underneath the lower frame so as to be in contact with and for moving the assembly over the floor surface. The wheel(s) at the second end (foot end) of the assembly preferably swivel(s), which permits the assembly to turn corners more easily by reducing the turning radius required, and the two wheels at the first end (head end) of the assembly preferably rotate but do not swivel, allowing circumferential wheel rotation for control. All of the wheels, however, could either swivel or could rotate, depending on preference. In some variations, a single swivel wheel can be used at the second (foot) end to enhance maneuverability.
The two attendant support platforms contained within horizontal and vertical safety railings perpendicularly attached thereto, are integrated into and within the lower frame in one embodiment, or are attached to and emanate from the lower frame in an another embodiment. One attendant support platform is attached laterally on one side of the assembly along the length of the lower frame, and a second attendant support platform can be attached either along the width of the first end of the lower frame portion which is intended to be the end where the patients head lies, or can be attached laterally along the length of the lower frame opposite the other platform. Both attendant support platform sections are positioned well below the patient bed support surface, horizontally above the floor surface and substantially parallel to the floor surface, such that an attendant can stand close to the patient support surface to reach the patient thereon to render medical care while the patient, the attendants and the assembly are being wheeled to an area of treatment.
The attendant support platforms are fixed and integrated into the lower frame of the assembly in one embodiment, and in another embodiment are attached to and protrude from the lower frame assembly, and may be fixed, or retractable or removable for storage or transport through narrow doorways. If retractable, the attendant support platforms can be folded and secured upward, or telescope or slide into the frame employing various methods for doing so. When the attendant support platforms are retractable, the safety railings can also be retracted by folding or collapsing against the sides of the assembly or telescoping into the frame of the assembly. This retracting feature narrows the width and shortens the length of the assembly thereby requiring less space for storage, and permitting the assembly to fit more easily through narrow doorways.
The safety railings are attached to the attendant support platforms and may also be attached to the upper and the lower frame of the assembly, and the vertical support members, and are open at one or both ends to enable entry and exit by the attendants. When open at only one end, the safety railings may also attach to the upper frame and vertical supports. The function of the safety railings is to inhibit falls and enhance the support and balance of the attendants while administering medical care during transport of the patient.
The wheels are attached to the lower frame at the outboard limits of the frame members (corners) to enhance vertical stability to prevent leaning or tipping over with one or two attendants standing on the attendant support platform(s); however, the wheels can be placed at any location provided the assembly is stable. For instance, the attendant support platforms can have swivel wheels or casters attached to the bottom and making contact with the floor, to provide stability for the assembly while accommodating changes in direction of the assembly when it is turning corners or changing directions in confined areas. In other variations, counterweight(s) may be attached within the frame on the side and/or ends opposite the attendant support platforms positioned to counterbalance the weight of the attendant(s).
Each attendant platform section (side or end) can include an upper traction surface to minimize or prevent foot slippage of an attendant, and may be particularly useful during those times when medications and body fluids may be flowing/dripping uncontrollably or inadvertently onto the platforms uppermost surfaces under the attendant""s feet.
A pad may be attached to the upper frame above each attendant support platform to provide comfortable padding for the attendants when leaning in to render treatment to the patient.
Guard rails may be included in the vicinity of the patients shoulders and arms to prevent the patients arms from falling off the patient support surface and potentially interfering with the attendant(s) standing on the attendant support platform to the side of the patient.
The primary object of the invention is to provide a wheeled patient transport assembly with a patient supine support surface and one or two platforms with physical safeguards, (i,e safety railings), to safely support and transport a patient and at least one or more medical attendants together with the patient so that the attendant(s) can deliver emergency medical care to the patient while in transit to an appropriate area of treatment while standing on a stable assembly that cannot lean or tip over with attendants standing on board, and while not having to be concerned with their own safety (i.e. falling off the assembly).
In accordance with these and other objects, which will become apparent hereinafter, the instant invention will now be described with particular reference to the accompanying drawings.